


When the Night Has Come

by ShowMeAHero



Series: Lightning in a Bottle [3]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood, Canon-Typical Violence, Domestic, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kid Fic, M/M, Minor Character Death, Panic Attacks, Pregnancy, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-16
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2019-06-11 06:26:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,917
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15309405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShowMeAHero/pseuds/ShowMeAHero
Summary: Taako has been waiting for this day, waiting to see Governor Kalen and do what Magnus asked him to do, not so long ago.He just didn't expect him to come so soon, or to come so close, or to comehome.





	When the Night Has Come

**Author's Note:**

> This is _not_ as funny as others in the series, but Lauryn asked for angst with Governor Kalen, and, by God, Lauryn gets what she asks for.
> 
> The title was taken from ["Stand By Me"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwZNL7QVJjE) by Ben E. King, but I was listening to [the Florence + The Machine cover](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vv2DSmy3Tro) of the song while I wrote this.

Taako and Lup are out in the marketplace, looking at fruits and vegetables that Taako doesn’t have in his garden that they can use for dinner tonight. Lup is arguing with him, holding up a pear and shaking it at him.

“I don’t think you _fucking understand,”_ Lup says. She dangles the pear by his stem. “This is the most delicious fucking fruit you can put in your body.”

“It’s like I don’t even _know you,”_ Taako hisses. He points at the watermelon. “It’s like you’ve never even _heard_ of a watermelon.”

“Watermelons are _nothing,”_ Lup says. “They’re just— Oh, hey, look, it’s Ango.”

Taako turns around to see Angus flying at them, running so fast he looks like he’s about to trip over his own feet. He gets to Taako and gasps for breath, and Taako’s heart thunks in his chest, skipping a beat and landing hard.

“What is it, Angus, what’s wrong?” Taako asks, leaning down into Angus’ face, putting one hand on his shoulder. “What happened?”

“There’s a guy at the house,” Angus tells him, still trying to take a deep breath. “He said— He said his name is Kalen, and I remembered you told me to watch out for that name, and he said he wanted to talk to Magn—”

Taako doesn’t hear what Angus is saying. He’s already broken into a dead sprint, running as fast as he can back towards their house. He can hear Lup behind him, and Angus behind her, but he doesn’t stop, doesn’t slow down. He can barely hear what they’re saying; his blood is rushing in his ears, and his heart is pounding, and all he can think is _No, no, no,_ because this was _never_ supposed to happen, they _never_ should’ve come back to Raven’s Roost, and who knows what’s happened already, who knows how long he’s been there, he could’ve killed Magnus, _he’s killed Magnus, he’s killed my kids, he’s killed my family—_

“Angus, stay out here,” Taako screams over his shoulder. He doesn’t listen to see if Angus stops, as they reach the house. Taako just slams through the door and finds Magnus standing in the kitchen with a man Taako doesn’t recognize.

“Are you Governor Kalen?” Taako asks, and the man nods, and starts to speak.

“Yes, I came—” he says, and he looks so confused, and that’s because Magnus _doesn’t remember him,_ he probably came and has been talking to a man who has no idea he ever existed, and Taako leaps at the guy, knocks him to the ground and pins him there with his arm.

“Angus, give me my wand,” Taako demands, because he can feel that Angus came in behind him, can feel all the energies in the room, and he hears Angus’ footsteps as the boy runs down the hall.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Magnus asks, voice pitched with confusion and something Taako can’t identify. “Taako, get off of him, what’re you—”

“Magnus, _shut up,”_ Taako says. Magnus’ hands are on his shoulders, and Taako shoves him back, then reaches his hand out for his wand.

“Taako, _stop,”_ Magnus orders.

“Magnus, _back off,”_ Taako shouts. Governor Kalen is trying to fight Taako off, but Taako has him pinned, forearm against his throat, arm still outstretched, waiting for Angus.

“Taako, stop, God, what the fuck is going on—”

“Lup, get Magnus away from me,” Taako calls behind himself, as Angus slides back into the room and slams Taako’s new wand into his hand. Magnus’ hands leave Taako’s body as Lup drags him back, just as confused but trusting Taako, as she does, always did, always will. Taako holds up the wand and points it into Governor Kalen’s face. “You remember what you did?”

Kalen smiles. Taako will _never_ forget that smile: grotesque, horrifying, everything that has shadowed Magnus until Wonderland, and Taako ever since then, when he picked it up for Magnus, when Magnus was forced to forget the man who killed his whole family.

“I remember,” Kalen says. “Why doesn’t Magnus?”

“Doesn’t fucking matter why,” Taako says, shoving the wand into his face. “This is for—”

“Stop, rebel,” Kalen says, and Taako _knows_ magic, and he feels the seventh-level spell take hold on the word _rebel,_ and it’s _Power Word Pain_ — it’s a spell Taako knows, and it hits him square in the chest, and waves of intense pain start coursing through his body. He forces himself forward, keeps holding Kalen down, even as he can feel blood coming out of his nose and— feels like his ears, too, wet heat dripping from his face.

“Taako, stop,” Magnus shouts behind him, but Taako shakes his head, gasping for air around the paralyzing pain screaming through him.

“Listen to me,” Kalen says, and Taako shakes his head.

“Fuck no,” Taako spits, still trying to breathe.

“No, listen, _rebel,”_ Kalen says, and the pain doubles, and Taako buckles, ducking his head. He throws his weight forward, all onto Kalen’s throat, and Kalen gasps, a choked-off sound. “I was only— He destroyed my only chance at—”

“I said _no,”_ Taako snarls, and he points his wand again, hand shaking, and says, “This is for Julia.” He’s cast his own _Power Word_ spell — he’s cast _Power Word Kill,_ and his word is _Julia,_ and it’s a ninth-level spell, and it burns him out immediately, but in the same moment, it kills Kalen instantly. Kalen’s spell over Taako breaks, and Taako collapses over the body, gasping for air. He reaches backwards.

“Magnus, come here,” he orders, and Magnus is at his side abruptly. Taako reaches over, shoves Magnus’ pant leg up and reaches into his boot for the dagger he knows he keeps there, slides it free and returns his hands to Kalen, uses the dagger to slash his throat from ear to ear. He does it so quickly nobody can stop him, but now there’s hands on his shoulders, and it’s Lup, and she’s dragging him away from Kalen’s corpse, pulling him across the kitchen floor.

“Taako, what the fuck?” Magnus shouts. “He said he knew me from Raven’s Roost, I didn’t even remember who he was—”

Taako doesn’t even know what Magnus was going to say next, because he staggers up off the ground, he drops the dagger, and now he’s on his feet, barely able to stand, and he throws himself into Magnus’ arms, and just— holds him. With his bloody hands, he just stands there, holding him.

“Taako, what—” Magnus starts again, but Taako shakes his head, squeezing Magnus tighter, because _he’s still here,_ he’s still _alive,_ he’s not hurt and Kalen is dead and he’s okay, he’s _okay,_ and Magnus’ arms come around him, slowly, and he feels stiff, and hesitant, and his voice sounds bewildered, and frightened, and angry. Taako buries his face in Magnus’ chest.

“When we were in Wonderland,” Taako says, voice breaking, and he lets it, because he can’t hold it in, “you lost something that— we’re not allowed to remind you of, me and Merle, you told us— you said, if we ever meet a slimy asshole named Governor Kalen, to— to kill him on sight. You said that. You said don’t talk to him, you said don’t let him talk to us, and to just— just kill him. And you said— You said to tell him it’s for Julia, you said that was the _one thing_ you wanted us to say, to his face, before we killed him,” Taako tells him, words flowing out of him, burning, like lava, because he remembers this _verbatim,_ “and you said, you said to say ‘this is for Julia,’ and to end him then and there, and you made me _promise,_ so I— I _did,_ and now I— I—”

“Taako, shh,” Magnus says, and his arms come fully around Taako, and he holds him there as Taako sobs into his chest. Taako balls his hands into fists against Magnus’ back, his legs nearly give out as the adrenaline leaves his system, just leaving shock and fear and pain behind. “I didn’t— I don’t—”

“Oh, God,” Taako says, and pushes away from Magnus, struggling to get out of his grasp, because he just remembered—

Magnus releases him, and he still looks dumbfounded, and Taako skitters down the hallway on shaky legs, a newborn foal running from danger, and throws open the door to the nursery. When his three children are in there, in their cribs, all looking at him, still alive, still okay, Taako forces himself back into the hallway so they can’t see as he collapses to the floor, curling in on himself and sobbing into his legs, hands clutched against his chest. He can feel the breath escaping from his lungs, and he can’t stop hyperventilating, and his heart is pounding, and it’s making his chest hurt, and his head is cloudy, he can’t _think—_

“Taako?” a voice says above him, but Taako can’t piece it together. He’s shaking too badly to hold himself up, and he fully collapses to the floor, forehead pressed into the hardwood, and he chokes on his own short breaths, trying to get enough air into his lungs. He loses track of the world around him, everything narrowing in on the wood grain he can see in front of his face, and he feels sick and dizzy and his hands are numb and his head is spinning—

“Taako, babe, you’re losing your shit,” the voice says, and Taako can’t breathe, can’t identify the voice, and then there’s a ripping sound and a new voice asking what’s happened, and then a cold hand touches his shoulder and he gasps, shrinks away from the hand.

The voices are talking, but Taako can’t bring himself into his own head enough to understand what they’re saying, or who’s speaking, or what they want him to do, and then a face is next to his own. Taako forces himself to look at it.

“Hey,” the face says. Taako knows who it is. He just can’t think of it. “I need you to breathe with me. Can I touch you?” Taako doesn’t move. He can’t. The face shifts, and then a hand touches Taako’s, and Taako forces himself to stay still. He knows that’s important. The hand brings Taako’s hand to a chest, and Taako can feel steady heartbeats and deep breaths.

“I want you to breathe with me,” the voice says. Taako doesn’t nod, but he does _try,_ forces himself to breathe at the same time he feels the chest moving, and soon he’s matching its pace. He recognizes the face as Magnus’, the hand as Magnus’, the chest as Magnus’, all familiar to him.

“Look at my face,” Magnus says. “Look at my eyes. Okay? Can you do that?”

Taako just stares at him, and he manages to nod. Magnus lays next to him, and Taako shifts, laying down on the floor, keeping eye contact with Magnus, breathing when he breathes.

“Remember your muscle thing?” Magnus asks. “I want you to squeeze your left hand, then release it, okay? Release the tension. Remember?”

Taako remembers, vaguely. He does it. Magnus smiles at him.

“Now, do it with your foot,” Magnus says. “Left foot. Can you do that?”

Taako does it. Magnus keeps smiling, starts stroking Taako’s hair back from his face.

“Do your calf,” Magnus tells him. “Left calf.”

Taako does it, and Magnus works him through each muscle, brings him up the left side of his body and down the right, until Taako’s feeling like he’s run a marathon, but he’s not losing it anymore, and he can finally speak.

“I did it,” Taako says, and Magnus huffs something that’s half-laugh, half-something else, then pulls Taako in, hugging him so tightly, Taako wants to climb into his skin.

“I don’t know— I don’t know what that was,” Magnus says, “and I don’t know who— who that guy was, but I—” Magnus takes a deep breath, then continues, “But I can guess what he did, and it’s— I can’t thank you enough, Taako, thank you.”

“No—” Taako says, but Magnus buries his face in Taako’s hair and just keeps whispering.

“Thank you,” Magnus says again. “Thank you, thank you—”

“I’m sorry,” Taako says. “I’m sorry you had to forget, but he—”

“He killed Julia,” Magnus finishes for him. “I can’t remember, I don’t know what he did, I don’t know what happened to Julia, but I believe you, and it’s okay, I believe you, I do—”

“I thought I lost everything,” Taako tells him, and Magnus holds him tighter, and Taako just breaks open and _sobs,_ which he does _not_ often do, but can’t stop himself from doing in this moment.

“You didn’t,” Magnus says. “You did it, you protected us, you did what I asked you to do.”

“It’s over,” Taako says, because it _is._ This axe that’s been hanging over their heads ever since he met Magnus for the second time, this waiting for the other shoe to drop every single day, waiting for the man who wanted to take Taako’s entire life away from him to come and try, it’s all _over._ Kalen’s not coming for them anymore, because his body is dead on Taako’s kitchen floor, and that sends Taako over the edge all over again, pressing his face into Magnus’ chest, shaking, breaking apart.

“It’s okay,” Magnus says, over and over and over. “It’s okay, you’re okay, it’s okay. You did it, we’re safe, you’re safe.”

“You did it,” Lup’s voice says. “You defended us. Pretty cool, babe. I’m proud of you.”

Taako shakes his head. “I— _Fuck.”_

“Yeah,” Lup agrees. _“Fuck_ is right.”

Taako lifts his head, and Kravitz comes into view in the hallway, still in full reaper mode. When he sees Taako, his skin stitches itself over his face faster than Taako’s ever seen it happen before, and then Kravitz is kneeling next to him, swiping his hand under Taako’s nose, hand coming away bloody. He puts his other hand on Taako’s forehead, and it’s cold, and grounding. Kravitz’s touch is gentle, but his face is enraged.

“What’s wrong?” Taako asks. Kravitz starts stroking his thumb in circles over Taako’s forehead, and his face twists up a little bit.

“Don’t ask _me_ that,” Kravitz says. He looks to Magnus, and the two of them have one of their little face-conversations Taako can never figure out, then he looks back down at Taako.

“I, uhh—” Kravitz says. “I— was called in, for the reaping, so. He’s gone.” Kravitz’s face darkens, a storm-cloud expression twisting his features in a way Taako hasn’t seen in a long time. “I got his report. He killed seventy-six people in Raven’s Roost, including Julia Burnsides and Steven Waxmen. He’s killed far more than that in his lifetime.” Kravitz’s brow furrows, his anger filling his face. “I’m glad to have been the one to do it.”

Taako can feel himself still shaking, like he’s cold, and he can’t stop it, so he just lets it happen, staring up at Kravitz. “He’s gone?”

Kravitz pushes Taako’s hair back from his face, and the storm leaves as he looks at him, and Kravitz becomes what he always is, to Taako: kind, soothing, soft. “Yes. I made sure. I’m so sorry you had to do that, Taako, but it’s over. The Raven Queen is judging him now. She’s assured me he will not be judged well.”

Taako nods, then buries his face into Magnus’ shoulder again. Kravitz keeps stroking his hair; Magnus keeps rubbing his back. Lup lies down behind Taako, fits herself up against him, holds him tight. Taako curls in on himself, and Magnus shifts to let him. Taako can feel that he’s burnt out all his spell slots on his _Power Word Kill,_ but he _needs_ to be sure, and he casts _Detect Heartbeat,_ and— there, he feels Wyatt’s heartbeat, and Jules’, and Blaine’s, all in the next room, and then, closer, Magnus’, and his own, and his baby’s, and Lup’s baby’s, and he exhales, slow, shaky.

“They’re okay,” he says, twisting to say it to Lup. “It’s okay.”

Lup nods against his back, holds him tighter. Taako wishes she still had a heartbeat he could feel, but settles for her wrapped so close around him. He feels them around him, and he’s still struck with shock, run through with fear, but now he lets himself feel _relief._ Kalen is gone; that part of his life is over; that part of _Magnus’_ life is over, most of all. Taako had thought nobody could touch him here, nothing could hurt him, and now the one person who could is gone, and Taako _killed him himself,_ felt him die under his hand, and Kravitz took his soul, and he’s gone. Taako laughs.

“What the fuck?” Lup asks. “Taako— Don’t lose it again, okay? That was terrifying enough the first time.”

“No, we—” Taako says, then takes a breath, steadies himself. “We’re free. We’re good now. We’re _good.”_

“Hell yeah, we are,” Magnus agrees. Kravitz presses his mouth to Taako’s temple, keeps it there, lingers long enough that Taako exhales again, breath catching in his throat.

“I’m gonna call Merle,” Taako says, after a little bit. “Tell him to let his guard down.”

“Like his guard was ever up,” Magnus says. “Probably doesn’t even remember what I asked him to do.”

“Tell him to come over,” Lup says. “I want him to look at your noggin, you’re still bleeding pretty good from his spell, and that is a _nasty_ spell.”

“Taako?” a voice says from behind him, and it’s Angus. Taako shoves himself into a sitting position and opens his arms, and Angus falls into them, crying against Taako’s chest. Taako buries his face in Angus’ hair and holds him, lets him cry, because there’s plenty of time to goof around with him and joke and smile and laugh later, but right now, Taako _knows_ him, and he _knows_ he has to let this out.

“I’m so sorry,” Angus says. “I shouldn’t’ve let him in, I should’ve forced him away, I should’ve stopped him, Taako, I’m _sorry—”_

“Shh, Angus, you didn’t know,” Taako says. Magnus puts his hand on Angus’ back and rubs it up and down.

“You did real good, dude,” Magnus tells him. “You knew something was up, you went and got Taako. That’s perfect, you did exactly what you should’ve done. We’re proud of you, kid, really, good job.”

Angus nods, then buries his face into Taako’s chest again and keeps crying. Taako just holds him, rubs his back and sits with him while he lets it out. Kravitz rips out of reality and returns with Barry, then leaves a second time and returns with Merle.

Barry leaves, heading into the kitchen with Lup, and Taako doesn’t ask what they’re doing. Instead, he stays on the floor, holding Angus, as Merle tips his head up, looks into his eyes, looks at his ears. Taako notices the splits all over his skin that came with _Power Word Pain,_ the ways Kalen broke him open, and Merle presses the Extreme Teen Bible to his forehead and casts _Heal,_ a sixth-level spell that makes Taako feel less like he’s about to leak out of his own body all over the floor.

“Now,” Merle says. “Who the fuck died in your kitchen?”

“Governor Kalen,” Taako answers, before anyone else can say anything, and Merle whistles, looking to Magnus.

“Did he already explain it?” Merle asks, and Magnus nods. “Sorry I didn’t get here quicker. I would’ve liked to kill him a little, too.”

“That’s okay,” Magnus tells him. “Thanks for coming now.”

“Anytime, kid,” Merle says, and Magnus tugs Merle in for a hug, ignoring Merle’s token protests against it. Eventually, Magnus picks Angus up, holding him against his chest as Angus wraps around him and clings to him. Merle puts a hand on Taako's head.

"You alright, kid?" Merle asks. "I would've liked to've been here. Sorry I couldn't help."

"It's fine," Taako says. "Sorry we didn't get to do it together."

Merle laughs. Then, Kravitz gets an arm around Taako, helps him to his feet.

“Why don’t you eat something?” Kravitz suggests. “Maybe drink some water.”

“I’m tired,” Taako says, and Kravitz nods.

“Water,” he says. “Then you can meditate.”

“No, I wanna sleep,” Taako says. Kravitz leads him down the hallway back to the kitchen, and it’s scrubbed clean, no body, no nothing. No evidence that anything ever happened there, on the floor, in the spot Taako can’t stop staring at. Kravitz leads him away, until he’s in the living room, sitting on the opposite side, where he can’t see that spot.

“Stay here,” Kravitz tells him, and he leaves. Taako can hear him behind him in the kitchen, getting him a glass of water and something out of a cabinet, and the sofa dips beside Taako, and he looks up to see Magnus, still holding Angus.

“Thank you,” Magnus says again. “No, really,” he continues, before Taako can speak, “I know what that cost you. And I don’t know— I can’t remember how I felt about it, but if it’s as bad as you say, I know it’s bad. And— You did that. For me.”

“For you, yeah,” Taako agrees. “And for Julia. You said, it’s for Julia.”

“Yeah,” Magnus says, and his eyes are wet again. He looks down at Angus, who looks exhausted. “Yeah, it’s for Julia.”

Taako leans his head against Magnus’ shoulder. He accepts the glass of water when Kravitz brings it, and the apple that Kravitz hands him. He drinks the water, he bites the apple, he catches his breath, he _sighs._ He _lives._ He’s _okay._ He looks at the dried blood on his hand where he’s holding the glass, Kalen’s blood. Kravitz sits next to him.

“Why don’t we go clean up?” Kravitz suggests. “We’ll take a bath. How’s that?”

“Okay,” Taako agrees. Magnus picks up Angus, who fell asleep, and puts him in their bed. Barry stays with him; Lup heads down the hall to the nursery. Magnus follows Taako and Kravitz to the bathroom, and Kravitz fills the bathtub with warm water while Magnus undresses Taako, and then himself, and he helps Taako into the bathwater with him. Kravitz leans over, gets soap and scrubs Taako’s hands until they’re clean, then gets to work on Taako’s face, his neck, his ears, places where he had bled his own blood and places where Kalen’s blood had sprayed up onto him, until the water is pink and Taako is clean and feeling completely drained. All Taako can see in his mind is Kalen, dead, bleeding under his hands. He can’t quite navigate the feelings that accompany it, not now.

“Why don’t we go to bed?” Kravitz says. Kravitz always knows what to do. Taako nods. He lets them help him stand, he lets them dry him, and then Magnus picks him up and takes him to their bedroom while Kravitz destroys their bloody clothes. Magnus puts a nightgown over Taako’s head, and then Taako climbs into bed, curls around Angus, shuts his eyes. Magnus slides in behind him, wraps around him. Taako keeps his eyes shut as the bed dips again, and Kravitz gets on the other side. Taako can hear Lup and Barry in the nursery, and everyone is okay, and they’re safe, and he lets himself drift until he falls asleep, still _okay,_ still _alive,_ heart beating and breath coming and _okay._

**Author's Note:**

> I also actually wrote two books! It was a long road but, I did it! Ta-da! If you want to read either of them, shoot me a message!
> 
> I have a blog now to request imagines - I just like to make people happy. Submit requests [here!](https://imagine-in-the-fandoms.tumblr.com/ask)
> 
> You can follow me on Twitter at [@nicolelianesolo](https://twitter.com/nicoIodeon) or on Tumblr at [andillwriteyouatragedy](http://andillwriteyouatragedy.tumblr.com/).


End file.
